Trailblazing #9 (12/06/2023)

What I recently found interesting:

A case for Poland to have a long-term National Strategy?

My time in Singapore is slowly coming to an end and among other observations below are a select few I have about how the society operates here:

• Due to a very humid and hot weather (the effects of which the government is actively trying to alleviate), people spend lots of time inside the malls which often go as deep as four levels into the ground → as a side note, I always get lost in them, which I suspect was their main design objective ??
• The country is digitized in almost every aspect → from human-less airport check-ins & bag drops to very efficient (either no-line for in-person appointments or intuitively done online with very effective customer service) immigration & other public services.
• Public transportation is the best I have ever seen. It’s clean, safe, extensive and reliable; as a cherry on top of the cake, the bus drivers are extremely nice and always go out of their way to wait for people who are running late.

Interestingly, as a very bizarre contrast, the individual car drivers very rarely yield to pedestrians in ambiguous road situations → which is quite different from what I have previously experienced in Poland or the US.

• I rarely see traffic which can be attributed to a very high cost of owning a car in Singapore (tldr, while there is high demand for cars given a relatively affluent society, there is also limited supply due to the government-imposed cap aimed at reducing traffic congestion & emissions).

Now, if we were to agree that the above (incl. the first one pointing out that Singapore is at the forefront of climate change mitigation / prevention) are significant value-add benefits to society, then we would have to admit that they have been made possible thanks to a coherent and comprehensive set of long-term goals (“National Strategy”) defined & achieved by the rather stable government ever since Singapore separated from Malaysia in 1965.

• Given the above, could Poland take note and, as the author of a leading article recommends, create its own long-term National Strategy “that transcends the shifting tides of politics”? And, if the continuity of thought / vision were possible, what should our National Strategy be?

To add to the discussion re: the future of Poland, there have recently been a few articles written in reputable sources (Bloomberg & Financial Times) suggesting that Poland is one of the few countries looking to benefit the most from recent geopolitical events.

• Because of that sentiment it may seem that no matter what we do, we are on the trajectory to continue our fast GDP growth (i.e. ‘ride the wave’) → which is exactly what I see as the biggest long-run risk for Poland.

While I agree with the author that Poland needs a long-term apolitical National Strategy, I would take it a step further and argue that lacking one will make us sleepy and ignorant (which we are guilty of doing in the Past) of what has been quietly (and since February 2022 very blatantly) happening to the East of our border for at least 15 years now (since Putin’s invasion of Georgia in 2008); to be clear, lots of people continue to die on the battlefield in Ukraine and Putin’s ambitions do not end there. Furthermore, there is now a full-blown War in Gaza, along with other regional regularly escalating tensions between nations across the globe; add to that an ever-lingering case of Taiwan, and unpredictability of Iran or North Korea and there is definitely a reason to be worried. Therefore I am certain that World Peace (i.e. people’s lives) is one of the most pressing issues to optimize for… And especially because of its strategic location and growing economic & diplomatic influence, Poland can unexpectedly play a major role in securing it [the World Peace]. That is why I believe it should be an overarching theme of our National Strategy for the next 10-20 years, agnostic of what industries we will focus on economically.

Miscellaneous

Personal

I just came back from a long-awaited South-to-North trip throughout Vietnam. I started in Ho Chi Minh City (incl. Cu Chi Tunnels & Mekong Delta) and ended in Hanoi (incl. Halong Bay), while making a stop in Danang (incl. Hoi An & Ba Na Hills) along the way.

• Unexpectedly, albeit Vietnam’s undisputed beauty & lots of history, it was the long train rides between the cities (20 & 17 hours, respectively) that brought me the most satisfaction, as I reminisced about my fond childhood memories. For context, my grandpa (who passed away in 2005) used to work in Polish State Railways and he would often deliver us (my brother & I) to or pick us up from a camp / tournament via train. He was the first loss I experienced as a kid, and to this day I remember how hard it hit me to realize that grandpa was not going to take me to yet another tennis tournament or bring me another post-kindergarten Prince Polo (a Polish chocolate bar) … but I know he is still watching and protecting me … and I guess, I needed those long-haul train rides to remind myself of that ??

In the meantime, my brother came to visit me in Singapore ?? and I am excited to reinvigorate our friendship after a few months apart.

Song Recommendation

“English Summer” by Other Lives -> I think this song can have many interpretations but for me it is centered around the phrase “English Summer’s calling.”

• It has been 3 months since I came to Singapore, and as I have alluded to it in previous updates, I simply needed a peaceful & reflective break from the world that I have known for the past 30 years. That being said, while I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here, I am excited to go home soon, see my family over the Holidays, and venture out to experience my ‘English Summer.’ Because it is calling ??